Hos 10:8 – TIPs

altar

The Greek, Latin and Hebrew that is translated as “altar” in English is translated in a number of ways:

Obolo: ntook or “raised structure for keeping utensils (esp. sacrifice)” (source: Enene Enene)
Muna: medha kaefoampe’a or “offering table” (source: René van den Berg)
Luchazi: muytula or “the place where one sets the burden down”/”the place where the life is laid down” (source: E. Pearson in The Bible Translator 1954, p. 160ff. )
Tzotzil: “where they place God’s gifts” (source: John Beekman in Notes on Translation, March 1965, p. 2ff.)
Tsafiki: “table for giving to God” (source: Bruce Moore in Notes on Translation 1/1992, p. 1ff.)
Noongar: karla-kooranyi or “sacred fire” (source: Warda-Kwabba Luke-Ang)
Uma: “offering-burning table” (source: Uma Back Translation)
Yakan: “place for sacrificing” (source: Yakan Back Translation)
Tagbanwa: “burning-place” (source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
Tibetan: mchod khri (མཆོད་ཁྲི།) or “offering throne” (source: gSungrab website )
Bura-Pabir: “sacrifice mound” (source: Andy Warrren-Rothlin)
Kalanga: “fireplace of sacrifice” (source: project-specific notes in Paratext)

The Ignaciano translators decided to translate the difficult term in that language according to the focus of each New Testament passage in which the word appears (click or tap here to see the rest of this insight

Willis Ott (in Notes on Translation 88/1982, p. 18ff.) explains:

Matt. 5:23,24: “When you take your offering to God, and arriving, you remember…, do not offer your gift yet. First go to your brother…Then it is fitting to return and offer your offering to God.” (The focus is on improving relationships with people before attempting to improve a relationship with God, so the means of offering, the altar, is not focal.)
Matt. 23:18 (19,20): “You also teach erroneously: ‘If someone makes a promise, swearing by the offering-place/table, he is not guilty if he should break the promise. But if he swears by the gift that he put on the offering-place/table, he will be guilty if he breaks the promise.'”
Luke 1:11: “…to the right side of the table where they burn incense.”
Luke 11.51. “…the one they killed in front of the temple (or the temple enclosure).” (The focus is on location, with overtones on: “their crime was all the more heinous for killing him there”.)
Rom. 11:3: “Lord, they have killed all my fellow prophets that spoke for you. They do not want anyone to give offerings to you in worship.” (The focus is on the people’s rejection of religion, with God as the object of worship.)
1Cor. 9:13 (10:18): “Remember that those that attend the temple have rights to eat the foods that people bring as offerings to God. They have rights to the meat that the people offer.” (The focus is on the right of priests to the offered food.)
Heb. 7:13: “This one of whom we are talking is from another clan. No one from that clan was ever a priest.” (The focus in on the legitimacy of this priest’s vocation.)
Jas. 2:21: “Remember our ancestor Abraham, when God tested him by asking him to give him his son by death. Abraham was to the point of stabbing/killing his son, thus proving his obedience.” (The focus is on the sacrifice as a demonstration of faith/obedience.)
Rev. 6:9 (8:3,5; 9:13; 14:18; 16:7): “I saw the souls of them that…They were under the table that holds God’s fire/coals.” (This keeps the concepts of: furniture, receptacle for keeping fire, and location near God.)
Rev. 11:1: “Go to the temple, Measure the building and the inside enclosure (the outside is contrasted in v. 2). Measure the burning place for offered animals. Then count the people who are worshiping there.” (This altar is probably the brazen altar in a temple on earth, since people are worshiping there and since outside this area conquerors are allowed to subjugate for a certain time.)

say to the mountains . . .

For the phrase “say to the mountains, cover us, and to the hills, fall on us,” see Luke 23:30.

high places

The Hebrew that is translated as “high places” in English is translated in Chitonga as malende. Ernst Wendland (1987, p. 57) explains: “The preceding expression [‘place for worship/sacrifice on top of hills’], though intelligible linguistically, sounds rather strange to the Tonga who live on the relatively flat plains of southern Zambia. There are ‘hills’ in their country, but normally no one would ever worship regularly there. For this reason the new translation will try out a cultural substitute (see below), malende, the ‘local shrine’ of Tonga traditional religion, where the ‘priest’ (clan head, who may be a chief as well) makes sacrifices to the spirits in time of corporate calamity, especially drought. This would seem to approximate quite closely the main elements of both form and function of the term ‘high places’ in the Old Testament, which were not always or even usually set upon hills, especially in the latter days of the monarchy (cp. 2 Kings 17:9, 29).”

In the Chichewa interconfessional translation (publ. 1999), it is translated as “shrines for worshiping images there.” (Source: Ernst Wendland in The Bible Translator 2002, p. 319ff. )

sin

The Hebrew and Greek that is typically translated as “sin” in English has a wide variety of translations.

The Greek ἁμαρτάνω (hamartanō) carries the original verbatim meaning of “miss the mark” and likewise, many translations contain the “connotation of moral responsibility.”

Loma: “leaving the road” (which “implies a definite standard, the transgression of which is sin”)
Navajo (Dinė): “that which is off to the side” (source for this and above: Bratcher / Nida)
Toraja-Sa’dan: kasalan, originally meaning “transgression of a religious or moral rule” and in the context of the Bible “transgression of God’s commandments” (source: H. van der Veen in The Bible Translator 1950, p. 21ff. )
Kaingang: “break God’s word”
Bariai: “bad behavior” (source: Bariai Back Translation)
Sandawe: “miss the mark” (like the original meaning of the Greek term) (source for this and above: Ursula Wiesemann in Holzhausen / Riderer 2010, p. 36ff., 43)

In Shipibo-Conibo the term is hocha. Nida (1952, p. 149) tells the story of its choosing: “In some instances a native expression for sin includes many connotations, and its full meaning must be completely understood before one ever attempts to use it. This was true, for example, of the term hocha first proposed by Shipibo-Conibo natives as an equivalent for ‘sin.’ The term seemed quite all right until one day the translator heard a girl say after having broken a little pottery jar that she was guilty of ‘hocha.’ Breaking such a little jar scarcely seemed to be sin. However, the Shipibos insisted that hocha was really sin, and they explained more fully the meaning of the word. It could be used of breaking a jar, but only if the jar belonged to someone else. Hocha was nothing more nor less than destroying the possessions of another, but the meaning did not stop with purely material possessions. In their belief God owns the world and all that is in it. Anyone who destroys the work and plan of God is guilty of hocha. Hence the murderer is of all men most guilty of hocha, for he has destroyed God’s most important possession in the world, namely, man. Any destructive and malevolent spirit is hocha, for it is antagonistic and harmful to God’s creation. Rather than being a feeble word for some accidental event, this word for sin turned out to be exceedingly rich in meaning and laid a foundation for the full presentation of the redemptive act of God.”

In Warao it is translated as “bad obojona.” Obojona is a term that “includes the concepts of consciousness, will, attitude, attention and a few other miscellaneous notions.” (Source: Henry Osborn in The Bible Translator 1969, p. 74ff. ). See other occurrences of Obojona in the Warao New Testament.

Martin Ehrensvärd, one of the translators for the Danish Bibelen 2020, comments on the translation of this term: “We would explain terms, such that e.g. sin often became ‘doing what God does not want’ or ‘breaking God’s law’, ‘letting God down’, ‘disrespecting God’, ‘doing evil’, ‘acting stupidly’, ‘becoming guilty’. Now why couldn’t we just use the word sin? Well, sin in contemporary Danish, outside of the church, is mostly used about things such as delicious but unhealthy foods. Exquisite cakes and chocolates are what a sin is today.” (Source: Ehrensvärd in HIPHIL Novum 8/2023, p. 81ff. )

inclusive vs. exclusive pronoun (Hos 10:8)

Many languages distinguish between inclusive and exclusive first-person plural pronouns (“we”). (Click or tap here to see more details)

The inclusive “we” specifically includes the addressee (“you and I and possibly others”), while the exclusive “we” specifically excludes the addressee (“he/she/they and I, but not you”). This grammatical distinction is called “clusivity.” While Semitic languages such as Hebrew or most Indo-European languages such as Greek or English do not make that distinction, translators of languages with that distinction have to make a choice every time they encounter “we” or a form thereof (in English: “we,” “our,” or “us”).

For this verse, the Jarai and the Adamawa Fulfulde translation both use the exclusive pronoun, excluding the mountains and the hills.

complete verse (Hosea 10:8)

Following are a number of back-translations as well as a sample translation for translators of Hosea 10:8:

Kupsabiny: “The worship places in the hills of Aven will be destroyed
because that is where Israel committed sin.
Thorn bushes and wild growth will grow there
and cover up the altars.
Then they will say to the hills, ‘Cover us,’
and say also to the mountains, ‘Crash us.’” (Source: Kupsabiny Back Translation)
Newari: “Israel’s sin, that is to say,
the high places of wickedness, will be destroyed.
Thorns and nettles will come sprouting on their altars.
And to the mountains they will say, "Come and cover us" and to the hills, "come and fall on us."” (Source: Newari Back Translation)
Hiligaynon: “The places-of-worship at the high places of Aven will-be-destroyed, which became the reason of the sinning of those (who) come-from-Israel. The thorny bushes will-grow-tall and will-cover their altars. Then they will-say to the mountains, ‘Landslide/fall-on us (excl.) and cover-(us)!’ ’” (Source: Hiligaynon Back Translation)
Kankanaey: “The place(s)-where- they -worship false/imitation gods at Aven which is the reason for the sinning of the Israelita will also be destroyed. Thorns will grow to cover-over their altars. And people will say to the mountains, ‘May you crumble-down so-that you will cover us (excl.).’” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
English: “The altars on the tops of hills where the people worshiped idols will be destroyed;
those have been the places where the people of Israel sinned greatly.
Thorns and weeds will grow and cover those altars.
Then the people will plead to the mountains and hills,
‘Fall down and cover us
to protect us from God punishing us!’” (Source: Translation for Translators)

Translation commentary on Hosea 10:8

In this verse the disasters that will hit Israel come to a climax when its cultic places will be destroyed and its people wish to be buried rather than undergoing divine judgment.

The high places of Aven, the sin of Israel, shall be destroyed: The high places (Good News Translation “The hilltop shrines”) refers to the pagan shrines where the Israelites worshiped and sacrificed after entering Canaan. These places were taken over from the Canaanites. Many of them were not on hills, so it may be better to say “shrines” (Revised English Bible, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), “pagan shrines” (New Living Translation), or “pagan worship sites” (similarly God’s Word).

Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation interpret Aven as a proper noun. There is no known city in Israel of that day with this name. In 10.5 we have Beth-aven (another name for Bethel), meaning “house of evil.” Here we have simply Aven, meaning “evil.” Both names are used by the prophet as a way of condemning Bethel, meaning “house of God,” the site of the chief sanctuary of Israel. There is a Hebrew manuscript that reads “Beth-aven” here instead of Aven. Some translations and commentators interpret Aven as a common noun meaning “evil”; for example, Moffatt renders The high places of Aven as “The idolatrous heights.” It may be argued that the plural high places favors this interpretation, but a religious center such as Bethel could have had several shrines, so the plural high places can still fit the interpretation of Aven as a place, referring to Bethel. In any case, a footnote explaining the background of this place and referring to 10.5 may be appropriate (so Good News Translation).

The sin of Israel means “the place where Israel sins.” Good News Translation makes this sin clear by saying “where the people of Israel worship idols.” In Hebrew the phrase the sin of Israel stands in parallel with The high places of Aven.

Thorn and thistle shall grow up on their altars: The Hebrew words for Thorn and thistle are a combination that occurs twice in the Old Testament (also in Gen 3.18). The first one is a generic term for thorns. The second one refers to a more specific type of thistle, but the exact type is uncertain. The combination of these two words stresses the complete destruction of Israel’s pagan shrines. Bijbel in Gewone Taal combines the two terms with “thorn bushes.” In 9.6 two different kinds of thorny weeds are mentioned, but with the same purpose of overgrowing destroyed sites. The pronoun their refers to the Israelites. For altars see 8.11.

And they shall say to the mountains, Cover us, and to the hills, Fall upon us: The coming Assyrian invasion and destruction will be so terrible that the Israelites will ask the mountains and hills to cover them; that is, they will ask for death. New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh makes this explicit by rendering Cover us as “Bury us!” These two lines are parallel, with to the mountains matching to the hills, and Cover us corresponding to Fall upon us. They shall say is implied in the last line. Revised Standard Version is accurate in expressing the meaning of the Hebrew by using the commands addressed to the mountains and hills. Contemporary English Version renders these two lines as “Then everyone will beg the mountains and hills to cover and protect them.” However, the people are not asking for protection, but death. They would rather die than fall in the hands of their enemies.

A translation model for this verse is:

• Enemies will destroy the shrines of wicked Bethel,
the sin of the Israelites.
Thorns and thistles will overgrow their altars.
Then they will say to the mountains, “Bury us!”
And to the hills, “Fall on us!”

Quoted with permission from Dorn, Louis & van Steenbergen, Gerrit. A Handbook on Hosea. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2020. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

SIL Translator’s Notes on Hosea 10:8

10:8a

The high places of Aven will be destroyed: The LORD will use the Assyrian army to destroy the shrines and altars in Israel. The Hebrew word for destroyed indicates severe destruction.

high places of Aven: This phrase refers to places on the tops of mountains or hills where the people worshiped idols. high places were shrines that included altars for sacrificing animals.

The Hebrew word that the Berean Standard Bible transliterates as Aven is ’awen. There are two main interpretations of this Hebrew word in this context:

(1) This word is a place name. It is a short form of “Beth-aven,” the name that Hosea uses for Bethel. For example:

The hilltop shrines of Aven, where the people of Israel worship idols, will be destroyed. (Good News Translation)

(2) This is the regular Hebrew word for “wickedness” or “falseness.” It is not a place name here. For example:

The places of false worship will be destroyed (New Century Version)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1) along with most versions and commentaries.

A cross-reference to Hosea 10:5 or a footnote such as the following one may be helpful here:

Aven is a reference to Beth-aven; see 10:5a and the note there. (New Living Translation (2004))

it is the sin of Israel: The full Hebrew clause is literally “[the] high places of Aven the sin of Israel.” Here Hosea describes the high places of Aven as the sin of Israel. The phrase the sin does not imply that Israel had only one sin. Rather, it indicates that idol worship at Aven was the chief sin of the people of Israel.

Here are other ways to translate this verse part:

The illegal worship sites of Aven will be destroyed. Israel sins there. (God’s Word)
-or-
And the pagan shrines of Aven, the place of Israel’s sin, will crumble. (New Living Translation (2004))

10:8b

thorns and thistles will overgrow their altars: This clause indicates that the destruction of the high places will be complete. The expression thorns and thistles is a poetic way to describe a place that is ruined and deserted. Hosea also uses a similar description of weeds in 9:6d–e to describe desolation and God’s displeasure.

Thorns and thistles are undesirable plants with sharp barbs that cause pain when touched. If you do not have words for plants like these, use a word for an undesirable plant that grows in deserted places. For example:

Thorns and weeds will grow up over their altars. (Good News Translation)

their altars: This phrase probably refers to altars that were widespread throughout Israel, such as in 10:1–2. It is also possible that the reference may be specifically to the altars at Bethel.

10:8c–d

Notice the parallel parts that are similar in meaning:

8c
Then they will say to the mountains, “Cover us!”

8d
and to the hills, “Fall on us!”

There is an ellipsis in 10:8d. In some languages, it will be necessary to supply the missing verb phrase from 10:8c. For example:

8d
and ⌊they will say ⌋ to the hills, “Fall on us!”

In these lines, the people of Israel express their desire to die. It is a desperate cry that indicates their suffering is so severe that they want to die quickly to end it.

Then they will say to the mountains, “Cover us!” and to the hills, “Fall on us!”: These requests to the mountains and the hills imply that the people want a landslide to bury them under rock and dirt.

Some versions make the people’s desperation more explicit by using words such as “plead” or “call out” instead of say. For example:

The people will call out to the mountains, “Hide us!” and to the hills, “Cover us!” (Good News Translation)
-or-
They will beg the mountains, “Bury us!” and plead with the hills, “Fall on us!” (New Living Translation (2004))

General Comment on 10:8c–d

In some languages, it may be more natural to combine and/or reorder these parallel lines. See 10:8c–d (combined/reordered) in the Display for an example.

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Verse: Hosea 10:8